Two dead in Buddhist-Muslim unrest in Myanmar: Police

YANGON (AFP) - Two people have been killed during Buddhist-Muslim violence in Myanmar's second-largest city of Mandalay, police said Thursday.

"There are two dead," a police officer, who did not want to be named, told AFP by telephone, without providing further details.

Police fired rubber bullets during the night on Tuesday into Wednesday to disperse hundreds of rioters, some armed with sticks and knives, who took to the streets and attacked a Muslim teashop after an accusation of rape, the authorities said.

Myanmar has been shaken by several waves of sectarian conflict in recent years that have cast a shadow over its emergence from decades of repressive military rule.